Chasing Down a Dream
by shopgirl152
Summary: AU. Not Just a Summer Fling universe (prequel). It's been two years since Phineas, Ferb and Buford formed Summer Still Rocks and headed out on tour. But it hasn't been an easy road; just when Buford and Ferb are ready to call it quits, Phineas is there to remind them of the dream they're chasing. one-shot.


**A/N 1: **Wow. It's been awhile. Or at least, it feels like it. Hi followers! *waves* Anyway, life happened, which is why I haven't been on here to much recently. But now I'm back (at least for the moment). So this is a prequel to Not Just a Summer Fling and is set about a year before Phineas and Isabella meet. Hope you like it!  
**A/N 2:** Song used/inspired by Better Than This by Hunter Hayes.

* * *

"Alright, we've officially hit rock bottom."

"How's that Buford?" Phineas asked.

"Aw come on! Ya kiddin me?" The drummer pulled a strand of spaghetti from his hair as the three made their way to the van. "Jeet hands over management to you and you book us to play at a two year old's birthday party?!"

"We needed the money. Summer Still Rocks is kinda low on funds. Besides, it was kind of fun playing as The Badbeards. Did you see the looks on those kid's faces? They were having fun."

"I wasn't."

The red head shrugged as his brother slid open the van door and climbed in. "Every band has to start somewhere Buford."

"Oh yeah? Last time I checked, up and comin bands weren't dealin with ankle biters." He climbed in after the lead vocalist. "Besides, have ya seen what the music biz is sayin about us? It ain't good."

"It _is_ rather depressing." Ferb flopped onto the couch, propping a pillow behind his head before taking out his cell phone. The sound of Angry Birds soon followed.

"How long we been doin this anyway? Four months?" Buford counted on his fingers. "Nah, that ain't right." He counted again, frowning. "It's been two years. Maybe we should just give up. It ain't like Summer Still Rocks is goin anywhere."

"Give up? Give up?!" The red head stood in front of his band mates, mouth agape in disbelief. "Come on guys! We work hard at what we do!"

"With little to show for it," Ferb piped up. He returned his attention to the game he was playing, only to start as his brother snatched the phone from his hand. He looked up at him.

"You're gonna let a few setbacks get you down?"

"A few setbacks? Dinnerbell—"

"Guys, we can do this! I know we can! Just a few more gigs and Summer Still Rocks will be on its way!"

"More like on it's way out." Phineas ignored him, doing a quick dance step. Buford groaned.

"You're not going to stop him?" Ferb asked.

"Eh. Why bother? He's gonna sing anyway."

The red head grinned, pointing to his band mates. "Whoa. Our bags were packed from the day we were born. There was something we were living for. We found our place in a runaway van and we didn't look back, didn't look back."

"See? Told ya." The drummer smirked as Phineas danced into the bathroom, shutting the door behind him. "He's cracked." His ears perked up at the sound of running water. "Good. Maybe a shower'll knock some sense into him."

* * *

Phineas stepped into the shower, letting the water run over him as he soaped up. "I never was much for falling in line, had a longtime fire in this heart of mine. I may look crazy in Momma's eyes, but I don't mind, no I don't mind."

He rinsed the soap off his body, reaching for the shampoo and squirting some into his palm before working up a lather.

_Could be a dead end road  
__I could be chasing down a broken dream  
__but I don't need to know  
__just where this thing is gonna lead  
__it's a mystery…__  
_

He rinsed the shampoo out of his hair and turned off the tap, wrapping a towel around himself as he stepped out of the shower.

He dried his hair with a separate towel before studying himself in the mirror. He ran a brush through his hair and grinned.

* * *

"Ya think Dinnerbell's come to his senses yet?" Buford sat at the table, idly playing with a shoelace. "Cuz ya know—" he paused at the sound of the bathroom door opening.

Phineas bounded out of the bathroom, wrapped in a towel. He flashed the pair a grin before dancing into the back room. "Oh ain't life a trip, yeah it don't get better than this."

"Ugh. Somethin tells me this ain't over yet."

Ferb ignored the complaint, watching as his brother emerged from the back of the van dressed in jeans and a white t-shirt, an orange button up collared shirt thrown over it.

The red head bounded over to the two of them, pulling his brother and friend to their feet before gently pushing them towards the front of the van. "I kinda like it when I walk out the door, not knowing what the good Lord's got in store." He threw the door open with a flourish, urging his band mates to look outside. He pointed to the stars. "There's a freedom in believing there's something more, yeah one more chance, one more day, to say what we need to say!"

"Alright Dinnerbell, we get the point already; there's a lotta world out there and we already have more chances than we can handle, carpe diem, seize the day, etcetera, etcetera."

"Exactly."

The bassist sighed, turning to his brother. "Where's our next gig?"

"It's…" he fished around inside his pockets. "Hang on." After a few more seconds of searching, Phineas pulled a folded up piece of paper from the back pocket of his jeans. He unfolded the paper, studying it. "The Alabama State Fair."

"Oh great. First a buncha two year olds, now a smelly state fair in June. Sign me up." The former bully rolled his eyes.

"Looks like it's pretty close, but in order to get there with enough time to set up and rehearse, we should probably drive all night."

"Let's get going then." Ferb tapped the address into his phone before disappearing into the main part of the van, starting the engine.

"I'll keep you company." Phineas went to follow his brother, only to turn around. "Buford?"

"Nah man. I'm sleepin; I ain't stayin up all night."

He merely shrugged before disappearing behind the curtain.

_Could be a dead end road  
__I could be chasing down a broken dream  
__but I don't need to know  
__just where this thing is gonna lead  
__it's a mystery__  
_

_oh ain't life a trip  
__yeah it don't get better than this__  
_

* * *

Phineas bolted upright as a loud pop came from somewhere outside and the van swerved to the right. "Wha-what happened?" He shook himself, trying to lodge the sleep from his brain as his brother calmly pulled the van over to the side of the road and cut the engine. He opened the sliding door and hopped out.

The red head took several deep breaths, trying to calm the sudden adrenaline rush before rolling down the window, poking his head out. "What's the verdict Bro?"

"It would appear we have a flat."

"Oh. Well, that's not to bad." He stood up and stretched, only to notice something on the driver's side dashboard. He slid open the door. "Looks like we're out of gas too."

Ferb sighed and Phineas forced a smile, pointing behind him. "Come on; I think there's a spare tire in the back. As for the gas? Well…" the lead vocalist went to hop out, only to freeze. "Whoa." His eyes trailed downwards. "An embankment. That's not good." He cautiously placed a foot outside, flattening himself against the side of the van as he edged his way to the back. "You know, this really isn't safe, what with the embankment on one side and the main road on the other. We should probably push this thing to a gas station." Ferb nodded as they finally managed to reach the back of the van. "Think we can push it?"

His brother gave him a thumbs up and the two turned around, placing their hands on the back bumper.

"Okay Bro, on the count of three. One…two…three…"

_Several minutes later_

"Wow. This is harder than it looks." Phineas leaned against the van, trying to catch his breath. "We've been at this for several minutes and we've only managed to move the van about a foot." His brother raised a brow. "O…kaay…less than that, actually." He looked around. "I hate to say it, but I think we need to wake up Buford."

Ferb smirked. "Allow me."

* * *

"Aw Ma. Not yet. I don't wanna go to school."

The door to Buford's room slowly creaked open and Ferb and Phineas stepped inside, the red head quietly shutting the door behind them. "You think this will work?" he whispered.

Ferb nodded, the two tiptoeing over to the drummer's bed.

"Five more minutes…"

The bassist smirked, watching the drummer mumble in his sleep. He tapped a few buttons on his phone, waiting for an app to download before holding the phone out towards the bed. He turned to his brother, motioning to the vocalist to plug his ears.

Phineas smirked, plugging his ears as Ferb did the same. The bassist waited a few seconds, then pressed a button on his phone.

The earsplitting sound of an air horn blared through the tiny bedroom and Buford shot straight up out of bed, making a fruitless attempt to grab a hold of something on the ceiling, only to fall back on the bed with a loud crash. He jumped to his feet, grabbing the taller man by the shirt collar, pulling him down until Ferb was nose to nose with him.

"What the heck was that for?! Do ya know how rude it is to wake up someone up like that?! I was dreamin!"

Phineas barely stifled a laugh. "Yeah. About your own Mother."

"Hey! Leave my Ma outta this!"

Ferb calmly pried the drummer off him. "We have a flat. We need to push the van off the highway to the nearest gas station."

"Can't ya just drive it there?"

"We're also out of gas," the red head supplied.

"Uh boy." The drummer rolled his eyes, following the others outside. "Ya know, it's a good thing ya guys brought me along. Otherwise—" he stopped short of the door. "Really? An embankment? We get a flat tire in the middle of the night and ya stop next to an embankment?" He cautiously stepped outside, flattening against the van. "I ain't light on my feet here; seriously, do I look like a little woodland pixie to you?"

"No, but you have wanted to be one." The red head reached the back of the van, waiting for Buford to catch up.

Ferb snorted.

"You're just never gonna let me live that down, are ya?"

"No, no we're not."

"The moment was just to good."

"Yeah yeah. Buford's a little woodland pixie." The drummer finally reached the back of the van, glaring at the others. He rolled up his sleeves. "Ya want help with this thing or not?" The two nodded and he pushed up against the van, throwing his shoulder into it. "Hey! I ain't the only one who should be working here; get over here and help me!"

"Oh right." Phineas and Ferb rolled up their sleeves, flanking Buford on either side.

Buford looked at them. "Okay, on three."

* * *

"Well, that took longer than I expected, but she's gassed up and the tire's been replaced."

Ferb raised a brow at the comment.

Phineas shrugged, leaning against the van. "You named the mustang Lillian."

"Touche."

"We shouldn't have any more problems now."

"Says you." Buford yawned. "What time is it?"

The red head checked his watch. "Five a.m."

"Ugh."

The bassist gave a long, slow stretch, blinking sleepy eyes.

"You want me to take over driving Bro? I think I'm more awake than you are right now."

He waved the comment away. "Easier to stay awake at this point."

"Man, we need a pick me up."

"Pick me up huh?" Phineas paused a moment. Suddenly, he snapped his fingers. "I got it!" The others stared at him. "I know what'll wake us up." He ran off towards the store, calling over his shoulder. "I'll be right back!"

"Where's he goin?"

Ferb shrugged in response.

_Getting by on just a little sleep and coffee cups…_

The red head returned moments later carrying a cardboard carton filled with three cups.

Buford raised a brow. "What's that?"

"Coffee." Phineas passed around the cups. "Careful; they're hot." He took the remaining one. "Ferb and I don't drink it often, but it is a nice pick me up if you don't abuse it."

The bassist lifted the cup to his lips, taking a sip. He grinned. "Carmel Macchiato."

"I knew you'd become a coffee snob once we got older Bro."

"Not snob. Connoisseur."

He smirked. "Right."

"Well, I'm good." Buford drained the last of his coffee, tossing the empty cup over his shoulder and making a basket in a nearby trashcan."Woohoo! Two points!" He jumped into the van. "Alright losers, let's roll!"

The bassist turned to his brother. "You were saying?"

The red head opened his mouth to say something, only to close it. He laughed, shrugging. "Nevermind. It's Buford."

"Shall we?"

"We shall."

_Learning through the downs  
__living for the ups…__  
_

* * *

"Alright! We made it!" Phineas pumped a fist in the air as his brother drove the van through the back entrance gates at the Alabama State Fair. "What time is it?"

Ferb checked the clock on the dash. "Two."

"Perfect! Our concert's at seven; that'll give us plenty of time to set up and rehearse." He unbuckled his seat belt and parted the curtain, heading into the main part of the vehicle. "Hey Buford! We made it!"

"Ugh." The drummer stumbled out of the back room. "Aw man; why am I so tired?"

"Coffee probably wore off." The red head flung an arm around his friend's shoulders, leading him outside. "You'll wake up soon. Hopefully before the concert."

The bassist came to stand next to his brother. He whistled. "Nice venue."

"I know right?" Phineas put his arms around his band mates, singing. "All I know is I feel alive and it's a real good ride." He grinned. "Come on guys; let's go set up."

* * *

"Could be a dead end road, but it's the only life we've ever known." Summer Still Rocks stood just behind the fair stage, waiting to go on.

"Dinnerbell, ya ever gonna stop singin?" Buford asked.

"No. No I'm not." He paused. "Or rather, I will. You know, after the concert's over."

"Or he finds another song to sing," Ferb cracked.

Phineas merely rolled his eyes, turning his attention back to the stage.

"Ladies and gentlemen, put your hands together for Summer…Still…Rocks!"

"That's our cue. Come on!" The red head bounded onstage, singing into the microphone as his band mates took their places.

_No matter where this goes  
__you know I wouldn't change a single thing  
__cause I don't need to know  
__just where this thing is gonna lead  
__it's a mystery__  
_

_Oh ain't life a trip  
__no it don't get better than this  
__oh no, it don't get better now__  
_

"My brother Ferb Fletcher on guitar, everyone!" Phineas beamed as Ferb rocked out on a lead guitar solo to cheers from the crowd. "And over here, my good buddy Buford on drums!" More cheers went up and a rare smile appeared on the drummer's face.

"Hey Dinnerbell, I think they like us!"

"Yeah they do!" The red head grinned as they headed to the end of the song and he sang the last line. "Don't get better than this!"

* * *

"Ya know, I gotta hand it to you Dinnerbell; as long as it's took us to get here, it's been fun. Least if we don't make it, we can go back to Danville and tell 'em how much fun we had."

"We'll make it Buford. You wait." Phineas slung an arm around the drummer's shoulders, leading him to the van. "I bet that in a year or two, Summer Still Rocks will have a following." He paused as the van door slid open. "We all packed Bro?" Ferb nodded and the red head grinned, jumping inside. "You know what I can't wait for?"

"What?" Buford asked.

He smirked. "The day we have a large following and have to sign autographs."

Ferb took a step toward his brother, putting him a headlock. "We're only doing this for one more year. If it doesn't pan out, we go back to Danville. Agreed?"

"Agreed." The bassist let his brother go and Phineas grinned. "But it _will_ work out; I'm telling you guys, this is the start of something _big_. I can _feel_ it."


End file.
